May 30, 2002

By Ted Hutton
STAFF WRITER
Sun Sentinel

It was a hard lesson to learn.

After two years of making it into the regionals, Florida Atlantic coach Kevin Cooney decieded to rely on the existing players to become better hitters and lead the 2001 team, instead of recruiting some junior college players who could take that role.

"We counted on guys developing at a faster rate," Cooney said. When they didn't, Cooney and FAU paid the price.

FAU sunk back ton an average team (36-24, 14-13 in the Atlantic Sun Conference) and did not get a regional bid.

"We couldn't hit," Cooney said about last season, and the statistics support his assessment. In 60 games, FAU had a team batting average of .270, with 40 home runs, 368 runs and 326 RBI.

Vowing not to make the same mistake, Cooney and his assistants targeted junior college players who were proven hitters when recruiting for this season.

The result was Mike Cox and Matt Pali, and the reward was a rejuvenated offense that helped FAU to a 43-18 record and a trip to Alabama for the regional that begins Friday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Cox is third on the team in hitting with a .344 average, and he leads the team in home runs (17), RBI (62) and slugging percentage (.616).

Pali is second in hitting at .347, and has 10 home runs and 41 RBI.

As a team, FAU has a .320 average with 83 home runs, 484 runs scored and 442 RBI.

Cox, who has played at third and second this season, transferred from St. Petersburg Community College.

"I wanted to stay in state," he said about why he chose FAU. "I like the coaches and knew I would play."

Pali, who has split time between first base and designated hitter, was discovered in Oklahoma, where he was playing at Seminole State.

"They said they wanted better hitting, and that I could play, and I knew this was a good program, so it was an easy decision to come here," Pali said.

The transition from junior college to Division I baseball was not a problem for the pair nor was meshing with new teammates.

"There's good chemistry on this team," Pali said. "It's fun playing with everyone."

The existing players welcomed Pali and Cox.

"They've had a huge impact," sophomore Rusty Brown said. "We're scoring more runs, hitting more home runs, and that helps out everything."

Cooney said he has to be judicious in his use of junior college players.

"It's a fine line because you don't want to get a reputation where you only play junior college players because then you don't get the freshmen to come," Cooney said. "But we said we weren't going to get caught short again, and we won't.

LACK OF FOCUS
FAU, the No. 3 seed in the regional, plays No. 2 Auburn at 1:30 p.m. CDT, Friday in the first round game.

Auburn coach Steve Renfroe is struggling to keep the focus on FAU and not on the Tiger's fierce state and SEC rival Alabama, seeded No. 1 in the regional and No. 3 in the country.

"Everyone keeps talking about us having to play Alabama again, but we're worried about FAU," Renfroe said. "We're well versed on how strong baseball in Florida is."

Renfroe said FAU should have the crowd on its side since "there is a real hatred for us in Tuscaloosa."

Renfroe said it was hard to describe the rivalry between the two state schools. "This would blow your mind."

Auburn was swept in three-game series at Alabama in April, and was just 15-15 in the SEC, 32-24 overall.

HOMEFIELD ADVANTAGE
Alabama (48-13, 20-10 SEC) is a tough place to play, as the Crimson Tide averaged 5,387 fans during the regular season, and rewarded those fans by going 32-2 at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

FAU averaged 861 fans at its home games.